Amberton University Expands Healthcare Administration With New Geriatrics Certificate as Demand for Elder Care Grows
By: Mary Nicholas
Hospitals are filling up with older patients, and the demand for elder care is growing. Amberton University wants the people who run those hospitals to be ready.
The Garland, Texas, institution has added a Geriatric Healthcare Certificate to its Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) program. The new certificate focuses on leading care for adults over 65.
Dr. Ron Norris coordinates the MHA program and helped create the certificate. He also works in hospital operations at UT Southwestern in Dallas. On most days, all 800 beds at his hospital are full. Between 60% and 70% of those patients are over 65. That number shapes how Dr. Norris views healthcare leadership.
“In healthcare, we’re seeing an older population,” Dr. Norris said. “It’s really about managing more complex chronic conditions and even socially driven conditions.”
Why Amberton Added The Certificate Now
Amberton launched its 100% online MHA in fall 2025. The degree now has four companion certificates: Healthcare Leadership, Healthcare Informatics, Nursing Facility Administrator, and Geriatrics. University President Dr. Carol A. Palmer called geriatric healthcare imperative with our aging population. She said early MHA enrollment exceeded the university’s expectations.
Dr. Norris said hospitals already treat geriatric care as a specialty. One floor at his hospital holds a geriatric certification. The emergency department holds one as well. In his view, leaders need the same level of focus.
“I think that Amberton’s certificates prepare professionals to lead into that reality,” he said.
He also pointed to how health systems measure performance. Hospitals have long tracked readmissions for conditions such as heart failure. Many now track geriatric readmissions too.
“We’ve really seen a push for quality outcomes with this population,” Dr. Norris explained.
Four Courses Built Around Leadership
The certificate includes four courses. Aging with Dignity covers the biological, psychological, and social aspects of aging. Perspectives on Death and Dying addresses end-of-life care, grief, and ethical decision-making. Population Health focuses on chronic disease and the social factors that affect health. Healthcare Quality Improvement centers on safety and patient outcomes.
“I think it’s unique because it doesn’t just focus on aging from a clinical standpoint,” Dr. Norris said. “It’s also from a leadership [standpoint] on improving systems and delivering better outcomes for the older adults.”
The end-of-life course addresses a gap he sees often. Many older adults and their families reach a crisis without a plan. “I think for me it’s a toss-up between the perspectives on death and dying and population health,” he said.
“You would be surprised at the people who are not prepared for this, even when they get into their 70s and 80s,” he said. “They don’t have the arrangements made. They don’t understand what to do.”
Old Assumptions, New Realities
Dr. Norris believes two misconceptions shape how people view this field. The first involves nursing homes. Many people still hold an outdated picture of them.
“We all have that, what we think a nursing home is, and it is absolutely not that these days,” he said.
He noted that many long-term care facilities now share quality data with his hospital. That data helps staff speak with families who ask for guidance.
The second misconception comes from inside hospitals. Some acute care workers assume end-of-life care and population health do not apply to them. Dr. Norris disagrees.
“I think that a lot of health systems struggle with this aspect of taking care of this type of patient,” he said.
A Stackable Path For Working Adults
Amberton structured the certificate to fit inside the MHA. Only two of its four courses, Age with Dignity and Perspectives on Death and Dying, sit outside the degree’s core curriculum. The other two classes are applied to the electives within the program. Dr. Palmer said students can earn the university’s MHA certificates within the degree without taking additional classes.
The credits also stack in the other direction. A professional with a bachelor’s degree can start with the certificate first. Those four courses can later count toward the full MHA.
“You could start taking these classes [and] dip your toes into it, so to speak,” Dr. Norris said.
He speaks from experience. Dr. Norris holds a graduate certificate that never led to anything beyond itself.
“I’m glad I have it, but I was not able to do anything with it other than get that certificate,” he said.
Dr. Norris also knows the adult learner path firsthand. “I was a late adult learner,” he said. “I didn’t start my bachelor’s degree until I’d been out of the Army for a couple of years.”
He later earned a doctorate and two graduate certificates. His advice to working professionals is simple. It’s “never too late to start something,” he said.
Who Should Enroll
Dr. Norris sees a wide audience for the certificate. He named healthcare administrators, nursing directors, and ancillary leaders in areas such as respiratory therapy and imaging. He also pointed to leaders in long-term care and assisted living, including those who hope to run a facility one day.
“I can’t think of any group that would not benefit from this if they want to be in health care leadership,” he said.
A recent trip to the pharmacy showed him why. Dr. Norris had three prescriptions waiting. The pharmacist asked how many he wanted to pick up. He asked why she wanted to know.
According to Dr. Norris, she replied, “Because so many of our seniors can only afford to pick up one or two.”
Many older adults live on fixed incomes. They often choose which medications to buy each month. Dr. Norris said leaders need to understand that reality.
“That’s the kind of stuff you’re learning in these courses, where you have that sensitivity and that empathy,” he said.
For Dr. Norris, the value of the certificate reaches well beyond the classroom. The patients filling his hospital’s beds make that clear every day.
“It’s a knowledge base that is just going to pay off big benefits,” he said.
About Amberton University
Founded in 1971, Amberton University specializes in affordable, flexible degree programs for working adults. Programs are offered online and on campus, taught by practitioner faculty, and anchored in career relevance and service excellence.
